Chances are you have already heard about Tonies and Tonie boxes! The Tonie box was all over my Instagram for at least a year before Santa brought them to our kids at ages 2 and 5. I wanted to see what all the hype was about – and if my kids would love them. Did they? Yes. Do they still, over a year later? Yes. I think Tonies are incredible for the 6-and-under crowd, especially if you are trying to decrease screen time. Read on to find out more about Tonies, Tonieboxes, and our experience with this cool storytelling gadget.
What is a Toniebox? Simply put, it’s an audio player, made just for kids.
Launched in the US in 2020, Tonie makes a cloud-based digital audio player for kids. It has simple controls, no screens, and there is a variety of content for kids to enjoy. What are Tonies? They’re little figurines that have stories or songs on them. When you connect a Tonie to a Tonie box by simply placing it on top of the box, little ones can hear the stories or songs. Think of it like an audiobook for kids!
Shop Tonies starter sets
There are definitely some things I didn’t know about the Tonie box before buying two. Here’s what I wish I had known first…
My Honest Tonie Box Review
Setting up the Toniebox
Before you can use the box with the figurines (the little Tonies), you have to connect the box to wifi. I was having trouble with it, so I asked my (very tech savvy) husband to help. About 20 minutes (and some swearing under his breath) later, we were good to go. We kept getting “error code: owl” which was really frustrating. All we had to do was reboot our router and we were able to connect the boxes.
You need to connect each of the Tonies to your account before they can play on the boxes. Essentially, you’re downloading the content onto the box over your home’s wifi, so that you can then listen to it wherever. It’s kind of the same idea as downloading a movie onto an iPad, which allows you to watch the movie when you’re on a plane or in the car or otherwise not on wifi.
Keep in mind, you can’t listen to a new Tonie if you aren’t on wifi, so you need to download everything first if you plan on traveling! All you need to do is place the new Tonie on top of the box so it can download the content. Then you can listen to the Tonies anywhere!
Tonie for toddlers and preschoolers
Our kids were 2 and 5 when we got them these for Christmas, right in the target market for the Tonie. I’ve heard that older kids love them, too, so I was hopeful that it was something we would get a lot of use out of. The truth is that Tonies really great for kids of all ages. The Tonies (figurines) are durable, and our kids use them as play characters when they aren’t being used on top of the Tonie box. I think because they’re easy to set up, our kids love that they can independently turn them on and off.
I didn’t expect my 5 year old to love hers so much. She listens to it at home while coloring, at night before bed, in the car. She’s a big fan! Her favorite content Tonies are the Gabby’s Dollhouse Tonie, as well as Marshall (Paw Patrol) and Elsa (Frozen). Tonies for her are a bedtime favorite, as well as a quiet time must have.
My 2 year old loves his for long car rides but doesn’t use it as much at home. His favorite Toniebox characters stories are the Pete the Cat Tonie, the Marshall (Paw Patrol) Tonie and Skye (Paw Patrol). He loves using his Toniebox while traveling. Maybe it’s the familiarity, but it really helps him fall asleep in a hotel room.
If your child is 6 or older, you might want to check out my post on the Toniebox vs. Yoto Mini! Some people think the Yoto is far better for older kids. Where my kids are still young I don’t have enough experience to comment on the Yoto from the standpoint of a mom of tweens.
Pros and Cons of the Tonie
Tonie box Pros
familiar characters and story Content on Tonie Characters
Most of the content is pop culture focused. There are a few that aren’t centered around TV shows or movies- like Playtime Puppy, which sings nursery rhymes. There’s also one for lullabies and a Tonie of Spanish lullabies, too. My kids aren’t a huge fan of the song-only Tonies. We love Mickey Mouse, Frozen Elsa and Anna, Elmo, Gabby’s Dollhouse, and a bunch from Paw Patrol. In case your kids are also Paw Patrol fanatics, the current available pups from Paw Patrol as Tonies are these:
There are also blank “Creative” Tonies that you can record on by yourself. If you have an audiobook you like, you could record it onto your own Tonie. For families with grandparents who live far away, this would be a cool idea for a gift for the grandkids. You could read a story on a Tonie and then they could listen to you reading a story whenever they wanted!
tonie boxes are portable and padded
The Tonie box is lightweight, padded, and has multiple options for carry cases. Because it’s a cloud-based system, you can download the content (the Tonies) ahead of time and use the system on a plane, train, in the car, etc.
The first time we brought ours in the car, we didn’t have a carry case for them. We just put the Tonies in a small bag to take with us. I purchased carry cases to use so I can make sure nothing gets lost in the car. For our vacation, we used these so the kids had their Tonieboxes and headphones in one place.
Do we travel with a Tonie box? Yes. Is it easy to? They’re bulky, for sure. But whether it’s a long car ride or a flight, my kids love to have their Tonies with them. They especially like to settle down for quiet time with Tonies, whether it’s mid-day (after some pool time, maybe) or at bedtime.
Screen-free entertaining stories and songs
I love that this is a screen-free way of listening to stories and songs! I have heard some parents say they’ll purchase books with the same stories so their kids can follow along with the pictures. Honestly, I don’t think that’s necessary!
Easy to Use for all ages
After about 10 minutes my 5 year old had completely figured out the system. We went for a long car ride recently and brought both Tonie boxes, and my 2 year old had no problem switching out Tonies on his own. My one mistake was that I hadn’t downloaded the Paw Patrol Skye onto his Tonie box, so that wouldn’t play for him. But no trouble at all on the others, or on volume control! (The volume only gets so loud on the Tonie boxes, which I love. The kids can make it go to max volume and I don’t have to worry that they’re making it too loud for their ears.)
Tonies Subscription option
Amazon has a subscription option for acquiring new Tonies. They don’t tell you ahead of time what they are, but if you know someone who gets the email of what’s coming up next you can subscribe before the box gets mailed out. (That’s how I got our Octonauts Tonie which was otherwise sold out everywhere!) The first month of the Tonie subscription is $29.95 and every following month is $34.95. You get 2 Tonies each month. You can’t choose the Tonies you get, so while I was signed up for this for a short time, I have since canceled. But it’s a great idea for families with multiple kids because you get the newest Tonies in the subscription box.
Cons of the Toniebox
Clunky for little hands to carry
We travel with our Tonies and boxes, and they can be clunky to take with us on planes. I’ve tried bringing just one box, but the kids like to listen to their own Tonies, so that’s tough. Sometimes they’ll want to listen to the same stories so they can use a headset splitter to both listen at the same time. But other times they want their own, like at bedtime.
Sharing Tonies is not possible
If you are halfway through a story on one Toniebox and then put it onto a different Toniebox, it restarts the stories from the beginning. I wish each Tonie box would remember where the story was on each individual Tonie. That way you could choose to restart all over or pick up from where you were in the story.
Can’t use with wireless headphones
Tonie boxes are not compatible with wireless headphones. Not that my kids have those (these are the headphones we use), but it would be nice to have the option. Maybe that will come in a later version!
Better for younger kids
If you’re looking for a child who’s 6+, I’d recommend checking out the Yoto instead of the Tonie box. I do think kids 6-8 can love Tonies, but you’ll get more out of the Yoto (and it’s way easier to travel with!) as they get older.
How to turn off the Toniebox
Once the Tonie is done with its story and songs, the box will automatically shut off 10 minutes later. If you’re looking for how to turn the Toniebox off… There’s no “off” button. I really wish there was a sleep timer on this. My 5 year old loves to listen to it at bedtime, but it goes on and on until the story is done… I wish I could put a timer on there for a certain amount of time and then have it shut off automatically.
Is the Toniebox worth it?
Overall, I would definitely recommend the Tonie box for kids in the 2-6 year old age range. My kids love them! It is a toy that has a dual purpose. They’re an audiobook but also little characters that are great for imaginative play. Each costs about $15-18. We usually include them in Easter baskets, Christmas stockings, and on birthdays, so our kids have accumulated quite a few over the couple of years that we have had Tonies.
Where to Buy Tonies and Tonieboxes
I got ours during a Black Friday deal on Amazon, but you can also find them at Target. Definitely check out the “starter sets,” which come with a Tonie box plus 3 or 4 Tonies. (It’s cheaper than buying the Tonies individually.)
Toniebox starter sets to check out:
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Want to know more about Tonies vs. its competitor Yoto? Read about that here!
This Toniebox review is based on my family’s experience of using Tonies for our two kids, both at home and traveling.
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Hello, Was it worth buying 2, one for each child? I have twins and was considering getting them each their own.
It was for us because we frequently travel with them. We bought a set of headphones with a splitter built in so the kids can listen to the same box if they want to (and so we don’t have to listen to it too) but because of the way our car seats are set up in our 3-row SUV, they can’t easily listen together. It also helps cut down on arguments if one wants to listen to one Tonie and the other wants another!
Use a smart plug in the outlet to have it turn off at a specific time!
That won’t help. They have an internal battery that charges up as it is plugged in. So just turning the outlet off like you suggest will not turn the device off.
We just got these this morning. You really really should mention that all the Disney songs are absolutely not the original singers. We are incredibly disappointed. They’re not even close. They sounds terrible. We are regretting our purchase. I’m leaving comments on every page I find reviewing these that doesn’t mention it.
That’s a good point. I don’t know why the Disney Princess Tonies are different voices! But in all honesty, my Frozen-loving kids don’t seem to mind.
Thanks for the review. We were considering one of these for our almost 2 year old but after noting that it’s so geared to existing video characters – and also noting that Paw Patrol has ONE female identified character, dressed in pink with a pink and gray helicopter – I think we’ll pass.
It definitely has a lot of pop culture Tonies but there are a bunch that are what I would consider “generic” for kids, too- like lullabies, Peter Rabbit (just a story that you don’t need to know any background to), etc. For Paw Patrol I think they have one of each character. Yes, Skye is dressed in pink- just like in the show; but Everest is another female and is dressed in teal (like in the show).